This invention relates to an apparatus and method for facilitating accurate placement and installation of crown molding.
Crown molding serves several important aesthetic and utilitarian functions, including the obscuring of the rough and abrupt intersection of a ceiling and wall, the general enhancement and refinement of the decor and design of a room, and the stabilization of some wall coverings where they intersect with a ceiling. However, because of the inherently elevated, overhead location of crown molding, installation can be cumbersome and difficult, sometimes requiring the cooperation of two or more workers. Prior art methods of installing crown molding require the location of the molding to be determined by holding a segment of the molding against an intersecting ceiling and wall. This method frequently results in inaccurate molding placement as evidenced by the misalignment of intersecting crown molding segments at the corners of a room. Misalignment of crown molding segments at the corner of a room is noticeable error that detracts from the aesthetically pleasing appearance of crown molding. Such misalignment results from inconsistent, imprecise, and incorrect measurement and placement of the individual crown molding segments. An example of an incorrectly placed crown molding segment is shown in FIG. 1. Looking briefly at FIG. 1, a crown molding segment xe2x80x9cMxe2x80x9d is installed at the intersection of a ceiling xe2x80x9cCxe2x80x9d and a wall xe2x80x9cWxe2x80x9d. However, the crown molding segment xe2x80x9cMxe2x80x9d is placed incorrectly because the wall-engaging portion of the segment xe2x80x9cMxe2x80x9d is not in full and complete contact with the wall xe2x80x9cWxe2x80x9d. This type of incorrect placement is typically the result of inaccurate, imprecise measurement of the crown molding segment and, as discussed such errors lead to visibly misaligned crown molding segments at the corners of rooms. Therefore, to prevent misalignment of the crown molding segments at the corner, precise and accurate measurement and placement of the crown molding segments is required. To solve these problems, the present invention provides a tool and method for facilitating precise and accurate crown molding measurement and placement.
More specifically, the present tool and method allow a single worker to measure the crown molding and determine its proper placement without having to hold a molding segment against an intersecting ceiling and wall, thereby increasing accuracy of crown molding installation while reducing the number of workers necessary to properly measure and locate crown molding segments. As is more fully described below, these results are achieved by using the method of the present invention to bed a representative crown molding segment in the simple apparatus of the present invention, which simulates the ceiling-to-wall intersection while providing measurement indicia for ensuring proper measurement and placement of the crown molding.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide an apparatus and method for facilitating accurate placement and installation of crown molding.
It is another object of the invention to enable a single user to determine the proper measurement and placement of crown molding without holding a crown molding segment against an intersecting ceiling and wall.
It is another object of the invention to prevent misalignment of crown molding segments at the corners of rooms.
It is another object of the invention to simulate a ceiling-to-wall intersection while providing measurement indicia for measuring a crown molding segment.
It is another object of the invention to maximize the aesthetic and utilitarian advantages of crown molding by ensuring proper measurement and placement thereof.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved in the preferred embodiments disclosed below by providing a tool for facilitating accurate placement and installation of crown molding at an intersection of a ceiling and wall, the crown molding having a wall-engaging portion and a ceiling-engaging portion. The tool includes first and second extension arms, each extension arm having respective inner and outer major surfaces and respective proximal and distal ends. The first and second extension arms are connected together at their respective proximal ends such that their respective inner major surfaces face each other at right angles for receiving and orienting a sample section of the crown molding. The sample section includes a first longitudinal side edge representing the wall-engaging portion of the crown molding for residing adjacent the first extension arm and a opposing second longitudinal side edge representing the ceiling-engaging portion of the crown molding for residing adjacent the second extension arm. Measurement indicia are marked on each of the inner major surfaces of the first and second extension arms for measuring the sample section and determining the position of the crown molding at intersection of the ceiling and wall.
According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, an edge scale is marked onto at least one elongate minor edge surface of at least one extension arm, the edge scale corresponding to and extending from the measurement indicia marked on the inner major surface of the at least one extension arm. According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the smallest gradations of the measurement indicia and the edge scale each measure {fraction (1/16)} of an inch.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the extension arms are of substantially equal thickness.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, one of the measurement indicia is shifted relative to the other measurement indicia in an amount substantially equal to the thickness of one of the extension arms.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, the extension arms are formed of substantially rigid material.
According to yet another preferred embodiment of the invention, each of the extension arms is approximately 8 inches in length.
In another embodiment of the invention, a method is provided for facilitating accurate placement and installation of crown molding at an intersection of a ceiling and wall using a substantially L-shaped measurement tool. The crown molding includes a wall-engaging portion and a ceiling-engaging portion. First, a sample section of the crown molding is positioned on the tool. The sample section includes a first longitudinal side edge representing the wall-engaging portion of the crown molding and an opposing second longitudinal side edge representing the ceiling-engaging portion of the crown molding. The sample section is positioned on the tool such that the first side edge of the sample section resides adjacent an inner major surface of a first extension arm of the measurement tool and the second side edge of the sample section resides adjacent an inner major surface of a second extension arm of the measurement tool, the inner major surfaces of the first and second extension arms each being marked with measurement indicia for measuring the sample section and determining the position of the crown molding at the intersection of the ceiling and wall. With the sample section positioned adjacent the measuring tool, the distance from a proximal end of the first extension arm to the first side edge of the sample section is then measured. The sample section is then removed from the tool and the tool is inverted and placed at the ceiling-to-wall intersection such that the second extension arm engages the wall and the first extension arm engages the ceiling. Utilizing the measurement indicia on the second extension arm of the tool, a point is then marked on the wall corresponding to the measurement taken during the measuring step. The crown molding is then aligned with the marked point on the wall prior to installation at the ceiling-to-wall intersection.
According to another claimed method, during the positioning step, the first side edge of the sample section is placed in full and complete contact with the inner major surface of the first extension arm of the measurement tool and the second side edge of the sample section is placed in contact with the inner major surface of the second extension arm of the measurement tool.
According to yet another claimed method, the second extension arm of the measurement tool has at least one elongate minor edge surface marked with an edge scale corresponding to and extending from the measurement indicia on the inner major surface of the second extension arm.